After the End
by Thefrayingedge
Summary: The end was only my beginning. I thought he had left me for good. His back should have been the last of him I saw for all of eternity. So I turned around and tried my best to live. Death found me too easily despite either of our efforts.
1. The Prologue

Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight not I.

Prologue

He left.

I knew the end was here the moment Jasper's desperately ravenous eyes fell on my bleeding arm. Edward, above all else, would protect me with all of his fragile might. He had the power to dent cement, crush granite as if it were nothing, and fissure the ground. All this was nothing in the face of my love. How could I not predict his misguided efforts to save me from further danger? He'd been my life for the few months we spent together. We spent nearly every free waking moment sharing our thoughts, quirks, and past lives. I knew how he thought and he was entirely predictable.

"You're not good for me"

Those were the words he left me with. The fool. As if I couldn't read his thoughts and intentions even without the powers his family was gifted with. So why did I let him leave?

I knew, despite any of my protests, he would go. He could disappear in the blink of an eye, without warning and that was more frightening to me than any of the falsities he spewed with each passing minute. I allowed myself these last few minutes with him. I played along with his charade, though my heartbreak was as real as the rain pounding down on us. He was leaving for good. The thought of spending years on end without him nearly broke me. I plastered on a false smile for his sake and held out my arms for our last hug.

I stepped into his arms and closed my eyes to savor this last moment. Both he and I knew that there would never be another for either of us. The rough texture of his jacket beneath my fingertips, how he fit perfectly in my arms, and his strange but pleasant fragrance were embedded into my body's memory. It would have to be enough. I wandered through the forest with that thought in mind.

He asked me to take care of myself. I promised myself I'd show him an even better Bella than the one he'd known. Not for revenge. No, this was for both me and him. We needed this tribute to show the world our love was not a mistake, a waste. I would live on with the memories and stretch them to the ends of my fleeting human life.

Or so I had planned. I should know by now that things never go the way I plan. How was I to know that my life as a human would end the next day? I tried. I really did.

AN: First chapter to be up soon! I just have to finish writing it :p. Thank you for reading!


	2. Modern Vampire Romance Gone Wrong

Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight, not I.

Chapter 1 -Modern Vampire Romance

I walked down the street with Bon Jovi's "Always" blaring from my ear buds. I could never tell whether I was supposed to be the singer or the one being sung about. Was it Tanya or Jacob that was the intruder in our relationship? Probably both. We meshed together. Edward and I were interchangeable, even in our separation. Indeed our love would last forever and a day.

I probably should have paid attention to the dark street instead of mulling over our love story. Then maybe I wouldn't have thoughtlessly stepped into the dark alley.

A flash of ivory white teeth. A grinning mouth formed a macabre smile. She bent over a body, so terribly beautiful that I couldn't look away. I knew I was looking my death in the eye.

_Drip. _

_Drip._

_Drip._

I couldn't help but watch as drops of blood glided down her chin and landed on the cold cement below. I knew my body was about to join the one already lying there, abandoned. I backed away slowly, knowing I would never make it out of this alley alive. I prayed to God, to Buddha, to anyone thought to hold vested power. I just wanted to make it out of this alley.

_What was that stinging in my neck? Was that my blood? _

I could feel it sliding down my neck with the last of my dignity. Tears rolled down my cheeks and a laugh threatened its way out at the irony of all this. Bella Swan, danger magnet extraordinaire. In a way I wondered if this was my punishment for wanting this in the first place. It figures something like this would happen. I hadn't imagined that my life would be ended so easily by a random passing vampire when I'd always planned it to be Edward, my life a fitting bridal exchange for his entirety. I could see, plain as day, I would never open my eyes to see bronze or gold or any of the colors in the spectrum. It was all such a waste. Yet, the steady draining continued on despite any protest I could have made.

_What could I have done to prevent this? What can I still do? _

There was still a chance for escape. Only I knew of the possibilities that my blood held.

_What was it that my grandmother had taught me years ago?_

"If you should feel your death drawing near, know that you hold power. How it will come to you even I can't tell you, but you will know."

I thought it strange that in the last moments before my death I wouldn't be thinking of Edward but my grandmother. Moreover, I'd never really believed any of her words but I could feel the stirrings of _something_. It was hot and aching and it swelled, nearly bursting me at the seams of what was left of my existence. My ears were ringing from the intensity and finally, I stopped fighting it for control. If I was going to be dead either way I mind as well take out this vampire while I dying like a good little human. Strains of Bon Jovi declaring his eternal love wafted through the ear buds, a mockery of the unfolding scene. In the end, this might have been what really saved me. I immersed myself into the memories that the music thankfully brought of Edward and let the power go.

I opened my eyes to blankness. Was that the smell of charred flesh? The vampire woman lay on her side, eyes wide open in horror. The blood still dripping down her chin, she lay there, no longer a conqueror but the conquered. Her dark red hair glinted in the moonlight and her blood red eyes stared accusingly. Victoria. Victoria, in all her glorious beauty and her tormenting presence, was no longer.

A twinge of satisfaction ran through me as I stepped over her defeated body. I gently turned over the abandoned body behind her, hoping against hopes that I would not recognize the now upturned face. Soft brown hair and flat brown eyes stared back at me. I knew this face.

_Mike Newton. _

I couldn't help but feel horror as I realized he had begun the change. I'd interrupted Victoria at the right moment apparently. Though he would never need to breathe ever again, Mike Newton would live to see another day. I never had a chance to really consider the consequences of this because in that moment I was overtaken with the burning.

I was being torched from within it seemed. Edward wouldn't think I was beautiful now. How could he after my skin burnt away and whatever was underneath cracked as hideously as I could feel happening to me now? I feared to open my mouth, that doing so would allow the fire inside to spread out and consume my outsides as completely as it was already doing inside. I didn't have to worry for long. Soon the fire permeated through all layers of my body, and it was as though each atom of my being was being torn asunder and burnt through and through.

I could hear male screams faintly through my nightmare of pain but I couldn't move. Shackles of pain kept me from moving an inch from my own private hell. Mike would have to survive on his own for the next three days. A brief moment of empathy was all I had before I forgot all about Mike. I had my own pain to suffer through.

Seventy-two hours is a long time. Especially with every moment spent wishing for an end. Death would have been a more welcome visitor. Unfortunately, for us, there was only pain and more pain. Second by second, time passed so slowly. I grew to resent the silence that filled the space between each tick of someone's watch. Was it mine? Was it Mike's? I couldn't tell anymore. The pain was too much.

_Ten._

Who was Mike again?

_Thirteen hundred_.

Surely it'd be over soon?

_One hundred thousand._

Only a hundred thousand more. Until what?

_Two hundred thousand. _

There was only a few left now.

_Two hundred fifty-nine thousand and two hundred._

Suddenly there was no pain.

AN: Okay end of Chapter 1. Thank you again for reading! Comments or criticisms both welcome. Fixed some things and realized I am very wacky when I stay awake for long periods of time.


	3. Forgotten

[Type text]

Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight, not I. If you recognize a quote from the movie or the book, it's obviously not mine.

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Chapter 2—Forgotten

Is it over yet? Can I open my eyes?

I realized the burning had subsided. Slowly, I inched my eyes open to a world of such clarity that I immediately closed them again. It was just _too much_. Colors appeared to a depth of vividness I'd never been able to before. Everything was so intense. I could see down to the miniscule cracks in the brick wall near me. Suddenly a pale face loomed into my vision causing me to scramble backwards in fear. Red eyes stared questioningly into mine. He was good looking, beautiful even. His blondish brown hair had darkened to a deeper brown that contrasted his pale skin nicely. His body had a sculpted look to it and his shirt clearly hinted at the muscles that might be hidden beneath. For the life of me I couldn't figure out who this was and why he was in this alley with me.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"Me? Who are you? I'm…I don't remember," I whispered, beginning to feel panic.

"I don't know who I am and I know I should remember you but I just can't. Just what is going on here?" He shouted in frustration somehow still keeping his melodic voice.

I knew I'd forgotten something important but I couldn't quite grasp what it was. This man standing in front of me was good looking but nothing compared to…who? Why was I alone in this alley with this strange man? Was that a body? Had I killed her? How did she die? What was I doing here?

I was terrified and desperate to know the answers. It was only at that moment when my surroundings faded away and I saw the fabric of time laid out beneath me. I instinctually knew that I could fix both our problems if I just reached out and grasped that man's hand. So I did.

A surreal scene unfolded before me.

"Bella? Bella! Are you alright?" a young woman called out to a little girl leaning precariously over the edge of a pier. I stepped closer and found that neither the woman nor the girl noticed my presence. I examined the girl closely and found she looked so familiar. Could this be me? Was I Bella? Before I could further confirm my guesses, the scene changed again.

This time I was deep in the woods.

"Say it. Say it out loud," a gorgeous young man said to someone's back. He looked somewhat familiar in a way I couldn't place. I would never have forgotten the face of someone so beautiful but I could find no recollection of him in my memories.

"Vampire," the girl whispered out before turning around. I gasped as recognition hit me like a ton of bricks. This was me. I was sure of it.

Surely this wasn't true? What person would believe this? I'd like to think I was a rational person. I would not believe this regardless of who was saying this to me even if that person was a very beautifully tempting man.

Suddenly I saw the girl, who I knew to be me, standing by a big red truck. A truck came swerving around the corner, sliding to and fro, as the driver lost all control. I knew that the girl was going to die then. Yet, how did I live to make it to this state I am in now?

My question was answered the next second as I saw the bronze-haired boy slam into the girl at a pace I shouldn't have been able to see. He covered her and blocked her from impact as truck collided with truck, leaving an obvious handprint. I stood staring in shock. This should not be possible. No human should be able to stop an accelerating truck with merely his hand.

A hint of trepidation flowed through me. Vampire…?

So scene after scene continuously opened in front of me, building up my life's story once again and only confirming what I was beginning to suspect was the truth. I had apparently loved this Edward. He loved me.

Did he really?

"You're not good for me," Edward stated as though it were an obvious fact before walking away. I watched as the girl he left behind, me, shatter. In that moment I could empathize with her pain. It was so raw, an open wound gushing out blood for all to see.

"Promise me one thing. Take care of yourself…" Edward pleaded with an emotionless mask. Why would he ask something like that while he was leaving me so coldheartedly?

Did he mean 'you're not good enough for me'? It was mere semantics but it changed the entire meaning of the sentence. I couldn't be certain. I was not the Bella that had loved Edward so dearly. I was merely a shadow of her, gleaning what emotions could have passed through me from sight alone. A blank slate with only memories of memories, none truly belonging to me.

Therein lay my problem. I could walk like Bella, talk like Bella, and be like Bella but I could never be this Bella. It was little consolation that I now knew who I was and what I had become.

Slowly my vision unfolded itself and Mike –yes, that was his name—and I were back in the alley. I could see that he'd gone through a perusal of his own life. I wondered if his had been more satisfying than mine had been.

"Did I love her? …Jessica? Did I love you? I know I'm supposed to be Mike but I don't feel like I'm really Mike. I saw all these memories of Mike's life and I can only wonder at what I was thinking or feeling at that time. Good of you to do it though. At least I know who I'm supposed to be…" Mike said clearly unhappily.

All these thoughts disappeared in the air when someone, some human, walked by allowing their scent to waft through the air towards the two of us. The smell was quite revolting to be honest. Though there was an overlay of something delicious, it was overpowered by the smell of salt and unwashed skin. Then there was the smell of methane just held at bay. I saw Mike's stance change imperceptibly, apparently not put off by the unpleasant smells. He leaned forward in a crouch reminiscent of a mountain lion readying itself to spring on its prey. I realized that he needed to be stopped immediately before a death was placed on my head.

I leaped forward, colliding into him, and pushed him into the brick wall behind. Dents and cracks formed in the wall but I held him there steadily. He struggled, kicking and growling at me. I barely managed to keep him steady as he snapped his teeth at my neck.

"Mike. You do NOT want to do this! That's an innocent man. He probably has a family and friends that will miss him. Do you really want to be responsible for taking him away from them?" I desperately shouted into his ear.

It was beginning to work. His entire body was stiff as though he was fighting with himself.

"That's it. You have to fight yourself Mike. This isn't something that you want to have on your soul for the rest of eternity," I said as soothingly as possible.

"Stop breathing! We don't need to breathe anymore anyway. Let's get out of here and figure out what we're going to do now," I said.

I looped my arm around his neck and, after checking to make sure he was holding his breath, guided him out of the alley and swiftly ran towards the forest.

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AN: I know that the "say it out loud" scene is from the movie but I felt like it really fit with this so I added it in. I realized that Mike is supposed to have blond hair and blue eyes so I fixed that and will fix that in the previous chapter. Sorry for how condensed it is. I'm having problems with document manager and spaces :(

Thank you for reading! Please review with comments/suggestions.


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